Racing Point driver Sergio Perez became the first Formula 1 driver to contract the coronavirus. He will have to miss the British Grand Prix, which started on July 31, and, probably, several subsequent races.

The British team announced the illness of their pilot on the eve of the home stage - the fourth in the current truncated season. By that time, Perez had already arrived at Silverstone and visited the highway.

“Sergio is doing well and is in a good mood. But he will continue to self-isolate in accordance with the requirements of the local health authorities. Safety remains a priority for our team and our sport. The whole team wishes Sergio a speedy recovery and is waiting for him to get behind the wheel of the RP20 again, ”the team said in a statement.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) noted that all those who have been in close contact with Perez lately have been quarantined. The organization stressed that the issue of canceling the British Grand Prix due to a single case of infection is not being discussed and the race should take place on August 2 as scheduled.

Suspicions that Perez had contracted the infection ahead of the British Grand Prix came after he missed a press conference on 30 July. Journalist Luke Smith reported that the Mexican's test showed an "ambiguous" result. The information was later confirmed by Racing Point. A second check unambiguously showed the presence of coronavirus.

According to ESPN, during a two-week break between races in Hungary and the UK, Perez managed to visit Mexico and Italy. This is allegedly confirmed by witnesses who saw the pilot at a restaurant in Guadalajara on July 21. Also, his wife posted on the 24th a joint picture taken in the resort of Porto Cervo. Soon after it became known about Perez's positive test, the post on Instagram, according to the publication, was deleted.

This season, Perez managed to become one of the most notable pilots. According to the results of three Grand Prix, he takes a high for himself and his team sixth place in the overall standings, ahead, in particular, of both Ferrari drivers. He finished sixth twice in the Austrian stages, and in the second race the Mexican had to start from 17th position. In Hungary, Perez finished seventh, while finishing fourth in qualifying.

Racing Point has already announced that they do not want to lose the right to release two cars in the UK and intend to find a replacement for Peres. Many former Formula 1 pilots immediately started joking that they were ready to replace a sick colleague. Their services on Twitter were "offered" by Kamui Kobayashi and Guido van der Garde, who had not competed in the "royal races" for six to seven years.

Racing Point didn't have much time to find a reserve pilot. Already on Friday, at the British Grand Prix, the first sessions of free races began, which should not be missed in such an emergency. A number of journalists suggested that the team would call Esteban Gutierrez or Stoffel Vandoorn - Mercedes reservists, whose engines are installed in the cars of the British stable. Also, the German team could have asked to temporarily move to Racing Point current Williams driver George Russell to test him on a faster car.

However, in the end, the choice fell on Niko Hulkenberg. The 32-year-old pilot just ended his ten-year career in Formula 1 last year. He spent seven years just at Racing Point, starting playing for her even when the team was called Force India. This year Hulkenberg no longer got behind the wheel of a racing car.

During the British Grand Prix, Hulkenberg was supposed to work as an expert on RTL from a studio in Germany, but in the end he flew urgently to Silverstone to take Perez's place at Racing Point. The mechanics only had to adjust the seat to the parameters of the new pilot before releasing it on the track in the first session of free runs.

The role of reserve pilots has increased dramatically this season due to coronavirus infection, and it cannot be ruled out that some of them will have to replace their teams' battle riders. Under certain conditions, the Russian Sergey Sirotkin, who is a substitute in the French team, for which Daniel Riccardo and Esteban Ocon play, can also get behind the wheel of Renault.